The Daily Oklahoman (Nov. 28th 2007)
A few lucky singers in state are picked for reality show
He never had any desire to sing in choir as a child, but Oklahoma country singing star Blake Shelton will assume the role of choir director next month during NBC's live reality talent show, "Clash of the Choirs."
He held final auditions for Oklahoma's choir Tuesday at the Farmers Public Market in Oklahoma City.
The show will pit five choirs, directed by famous musicians, against each other in a live competition in New York. It's set to air Dec. 17 through 20.
"I couldn't be more excited to be a part of a show like this ... for selfish reasons, and excited for Oklahoma to have a chance to develop even more talent. It seems like an endless, bottomless pool of talent here in the state of Oklahoma," Shelton said. "If team Oklahoma wins, $250,000 is donated to the charity of my choice -- Project Rebuild in Oklahoma."
At the preliminary auditions, 50 Oklahoma singers were chosen from the hundreds who tried out. Tuesday, those finalists were filled with nerves, fear, excitement and drama as they stepped up to sing for Shelton. Under the glare of bright photographic lights and television cameras, all eyes and ears in the room were fixed on them.
The Farmers Market was chilly, but the contestants shivered more from anticipation than the cool temperature. Throughout the day, groups of contestants signed in and waited for their chance at stardom.
One contestant, Megan Roberts, 20, was from Shelton's hometown, Ada. She said her dad, Chuck Roberts, a teacher there, told her stories about Shelton's high school shenanigans.
"He said you tied a dead deer up in a car as a prank and acted like it was driving," she said.
Blushing, Shelton acknowledged the prank, adding that he still likes to hunt. After Roberts sang a beautiful rendition of "Blue" by LeAnn Rhymes, Shelton said, "I can't believe that I'm about to let the meanest-teacher-I-ever-had's daughter in my choir. Congratulations. Let's go to New York City."
He told her to say "hi" to everyone in Ada for him -- except her father.
Other contestants didn't necessarily have funny icebreakers, but they did their best to bring their charisma and talent.
"I'm kind of nervous because I've never done anything really big like this, to have the chance to go on TV or anything. But I'm feeling pretty confident," said Raymond Mobley, 21, of Edmond. "I have more of a pop style, like a kind of a Justin Timberlake-y kind of sound."
Contestant Steven Fontenot, 21, a musical theater junior at Oklahoma City University, was more excited than nervous. He was a bundle of energy in his bright green matching hoodie and sneakers, with a hot pink scarf tied around his neck.
"I'm trying to contain myself and be calm and collected. But it's going to bust out upstairs," he said. "I mostly sing musical theater and opera, so I'm kind of a little bit out of my element with the song selections, but I'm just going to be fierce and own it."
The auditioners were given a list of songs, mostly country, to choose from for the final auditions.
"Obviously, we're going to lean a little bit country," Shelton said. "I mean we're from Oklahoma. And if I'm the leader of the pack, then my expertise is in country music, you know. I think there's a lot of country music that lends itself to choir music, and the trick's going to be picking the exact right songs, and songs that will have impact."
Shelton said he is worried about directing the choir, since he has no experience with that.
"I'm pretty ... nervous because they told me yesterday that I'll have to actually conduct these people, and I don't know ... what does all this mean? I don't know. Point up, point down, sing high, sing low, I don't know! It's going to be comical, to say the least."
He is confident the Oklahoma choir can win the competition.
"Obviously, I think we'll get all the Oklahoma votes. I think we'll get a lot of other votes because we have the most talent in Oklahoma, and I'm proud to say that. I'll stand by that to the death," Shelton said. "Just look at the talent that continues to come out of the state. Maybe we do have a smaller population, but we probably have a higher population of great singers."
The choirs will be eliminated one by one during the competition until the final night, when the fate of the final three choirs is passed to the will of the viewers, who will vote via phone or at www.nbc.com.Another hopeful got the news he wanted to hear from Shelton. Demetrius Johnson, 35, of Oklahoma City also was accepted into the choir. He is the director of an inner-city performance group in Oklahoma City called JETS, INC.
Several auditioners were accepted to the choir during Tuesday's auditions, but many were given a "maybe" or a "no." All of Shelton's choir members will be revealed when the show goes live in December.